Page 48 of Into the Heartless Wood
though perhaps not quite the same
as I was.
I cannot go to Owen tonight.
He will ask about my ruined hands.
If I tell him what I’ve done
he will recoil from me.
He will remember
what I am.
He will climb over his wall
and
never
come
back.
Beyond the wood, the sun sinks.
Soon, the stars will come.
Soon, Owen will climb over the wall
and I will not be waiting.
It is better, this way.
Better if he never sees me again.
The last of the light fades from the wood.
Beyond the trees, the stars are spinning.
I will stay at the feet of the silver birch.
I will not go to him.
I will not.
Chapter Twenty-Three
OWEN
IGET THE JOB AT THE TELEGRAPH OFFICE,BUT IT DOESN’T COMEwith room and board.
I tell Father so at supper, which is roasted lamb and fresh green beans from the garden.
He raises his eyebrows at me across the table.
I force myself not to squirm. “It’ll be better like this—I’ll be away from the wood all day but home in time to cook for you. To chart the stars with you.”
